Fence post wire fastener



. 1968. M. H. FAHRENH'OLZ 3,411,754

FENCE POST WIRE FASTENER Filed Dec. 8, 1966 Martin H. Fahren/ra/z l NVEN TOR.

United States Patent 3,411,754 FENCE POST WIRE FASTENER Martin H.Fahrenholz, Bassett, Nebr. 68714 Continuation-impart of application Ser.No. 440,673, Mar. 10, 1965. This application Dec. 8, 1966, Ser. No.600,130

4 Claims. (Cl. 256-48) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Means for attaching anelongated flexible member, such as a strand of wire, to a fence post orthe like, including horizontally spaced apart clips defining generallyvertically disposed oppositely opening slots, the slots in the clipshaving closed ends in substantial horizontal alignment and verticallyspaced entrance passages, the entrance passages being disposed invertically spaced relation so that one of said clips holds the wire upin a locking position and the other of the clips holds the wire down ina locking position against accidental dislodgment.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application,Ser. No. 440,673, filed Mar. 10, 1965, now abandoned.

The fastener of the instant invention is in the form of a plate-likemember bent into generally U-shaped construction including a pair ofgenerally parallel upstanding flanges interconnected by means of anupstanding bight portion extending therebetween and the bight portion ofthe fastener includes structural features thereof adapting the fastenerto be secured to the vertical front face of a fence post or the likewith the outer surface of the bight portion opposing the face of thefence post and the flanges of the fastener projecting outwardly from thefence post. The flanges each includes a vertical slot formedtherethrough with the slot in one flange being closed at its upper endand the slot in the other flange closed at its lower end. The closedends of the slots are in substantial horizontal alignment and each ofthe slots includes an entrance passage extending between the end of thecorresponding slot remote from the closed end thereof and a marginaledge portion of the corresponding flange.

A primary object of the present invention is to provide means whereby anelongated flexible member, such as a strand of wire, can be securelyattached to a fence post or the like, without fear of accidentaldislodgmeint thereof from the fence post with such means functioning tohold the wire up in a locking position while holding the wire down in alocking position and thereby preventing accidental dislodgment thereofwhile permitting easy manually deliberate installation or removal of theflexible member.

Another important object of the present invention is to provide aninexpensive, simple, effective and efficient means whereby wire may bestrung along fence posts, irrespective of the nature or configuration ofthe fence posts, without the use of any tools or manual dexterity andwhereby the strands of wire will lie in positive lines and be securelylocked against upward or downward movement relative to the fence posts.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of one form of post wire fastener unit,constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of another form of 3,411,754 PatentedNov. 19, 1968 ice fence wire fastener unit, constructed in accordancewith the present invention;

FIGURE 3 is a further form of fence wire fastener unit, constructed inaccordance with the present invention;

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of a still further form of fence postwire fastener unit, constructed in accordance with the presentinvention;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of a still further form of fence postwire fastener unit, constructed in accordance with the presentinvention;

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of a still further form of fence postwire fastener unit, constructed in accord-- ance with the presentinvention;

FIGURE 7 is a cross-sectional view of a unit, similar to, for example,FIGURE 5 or 6, showing the same mounted on a round wooden fence post orthe like, and,

FIGURE 8 is a cross-sectional view, taken substantially on line 8-8 ofFIGURE 4 and showing the means for attaching the unit to the particularfence post.

Referring now more to the accompanying drawings, and initially to FIGURE1, the numeral 10 generally designates a conventional T-shaped fencepost, which has a front flange 12 provided with a flat front face 14.The means for attaching the strand of wire 16, which is merelyrepresentative, since any elongated flexible member can be attached tothe fence post, is generally designated by the reference numeral 18. Thewire fastener unit 18, in the instance of FIGURE 1, includes a pair ofclips 20 and 200, which are of identical construction but are indifferent structural positioning with respect to the face 14 of thefence post.

The clip 20 and the clip 20a have flat thin body portions 22 and 24which are vertically orientated with respect to the flat face 14 andhave their inner vertical straight edges welded, as at 26, to the flatface 14 of the flange 12. Thus, the body portions 22 and 24 outstandperpendicularly from the flat face 14 and are arranged vertically oraxially of the vertical axis of the post. The body portion 22 is formedwith a downwardly and inwardly, substantially vertically disposed slot28, while the body portion 24 is formed with an upwardly and inwardly,substantially vertically disposed slot 30. The slots 28 and 30 haveclosed inner ends 32 and 34 which are substantially horizontallyaligned.

The slot 28 has an entrance 34, so that the strand of wire 16 may bemoved downwardly into the slot 28 and rest on the inner closed end32thereo f,whilethe slot 30 has an entrance 36 so that the strand may bemoved into the slot and upwardly in the slot to engage and rest againstthe inner end 34 of the slot 30. Since the closed inner ends 32 and 34are substantially horizontally aligned, it can be appreciated that thestrand 16 will extend substantially straight across the face 14 of theflange 12 and will be held up in horizontal position and will be helddown in horizontal position.

It can be appreciated that the body portions 22 and 24 are identical butthe result is achieved because the body portions are verticallystaggered and the slots have their entrances 34 and 36 at the top and atthe bottom.

Thus, the locking of the stuand of wire 16 in a horizontal position sothat it cannot be moved accidentally out of the wire fastener 18, whichis composed of the two clips that comprise similar thin body portions,which may be easily stamped from sheet metal or the like or which may beeasily fabricated from plastic or similar inexpensive material, isrealized by the reverse positioning of the body portions and the factthat they are vertically spaced.

A further form of wire fastener unit, generally designated by thereference numeral 38, is shown in FIGURE 2. In this instance, the wirefastener includes a pair of similar clips and 42, which have thin, flatnarrow body portions 44 and 46 that are vertically orientated and whichhave rear edges that are welded to the face 14 of the post so that theclips are in vertically spaced relationship and are in laterally spacedcooperative relationship. The body portions 44 and 46 are formed withvertical slots 48 and 50, the slots terminating in closed inner ends 52and 54 which are horizontally aligned for the reception of the strand ofwire 16. The slots 46 and 48- are vertically or perpendicularly disposedand the outer edges of the body portions are formed with lateralentrance openings for the slots, with the entrance opening 56 for theslot 48 being at the top of the body member 44 and the entrance opening58 for the slot being at the bottom of the body portion '46.Consequently, as in the ease of the wire fastener unit of FIGURE 1, theclips of FIGURE 2 are of identical construction but are attached to theface 14 in vertically reversed and vertically spaced relationship sothat the inner ends of the vertical slots are in horizontal alignmentwhile the entrance openings 56 and 58 are vertically spaced apart,whereby the wire strand 16 is held up in horizontal position and helddown in horizontal position.

With reference to FIGURE 3, the clips 42' and 44' are formed integrallyin an integral unit 60 by virtue of a bridge plate 62, which has itsflat rear face welded or othenwise fixedly superimposed on the flatfront face 14 of the flange 12 of the post. The unit 60 of FIGURE 3 isobviously easier to attach to the face 14 since it is not necessary tosolder, weld, braze or otherwise affix the rear edges of the individualclips, as in the instance of FIGURES 1 and 2, to the face 14, so thatthe closed inner ends of the upwardly and downwardly extending lockingslots are in substantially horizontal alignment. With the unit 60 ofFIGURE 3, it is only necessary to secure the plate 62 and, furthermore,it can be appreciated that the entire unit can be stamped or molded inone piece with the clips bent outwardly from the bridging plate 62 so asto assume their lateral substantially parallel relationship.

In FIGURE 4, the wire fastener unit 64 possesses further advantages,even though it is similar to the unit 60 and to the individual clips 40and 42 of the form 38 of FIGURE 2. In FIGURE 4, a single blank 66 isformed and includes a web or bridge portion 68 which extendstransversely of the face 14 of the post, straight across or normal tothe vertical axis thereof, which is an advantage over the inclinedbridge plate 60 of the form of FIGURE 3. The plate 66 is provided withoutstruck end portions 70 and 72 and the web 68 includes center concaveportion 73, the end portion 70 being formed with a vertical slot 74having a top lateral entrance 76 and the end portion 72 being formedwith a similar vertical slot but has a lower or downwardly space-dlateral entrance 78, the vertical slots having horizontally alignedclosed inner ends 80, which lockinlgly seat the wire strand 16 andrestrain it from upward or downward movement.

In the form of FIGURE 4, instead of welding the web portion or bridgingplate 68 to the face 14, the same is formed with outwardly strucktongues 82 and 84 which are bent around the flange 12, as shown inFIGURE 8, so as to lock the wire fastener unit in place without thenecessity of welding or otherwise fastening the same in a somewhatsemi-permanent fashion to the face 14 of the post.

In FIGURE 5, a wire fastener unit 86 is disclosed for use with a ratherconventional T-shaped post wherein the front face 14 is formed with acenter, axially ex tending rib 88 that is provided at vertically spacedpoints with outwardly extending lugs 90. The wire fastener unit 86 isformed in one piece, similar to the units 62 and 64 and is substantiallychannel-shaped, having a web portion 92 which has an axially extendingcenter concave portion 94 to accommodate the rib 88 and which is formedwith a slot or cutout portion 96 to lockingly receive the lug so as tosecure the unit 86 in place. The opposing leg portions 98 and 100 areformed with locking slot means 102 and 104 that are similar to thearrangement of the locking slots for the unit 64, in that they aresubstantially L-shaped with the entrances for the Wire receiving slotsbeing vertically spaced so as to lock the wire strand against upward ordownward movement.

The wire fastener unit 106 of FIGURE 6 is identical to that of FIGURE 5,except that the leg portions 108 and .110 are formed with a slightlydifferent variation of locking means for the wire strand 16. In thisrespect, the leg portion 108 has a bottom edge 112 which is formed withan entrance 114 for the vertical locking slot 116, while the leg portionhas an upper edge portion 118 that is formed therethrough with anentrance 120 for the vertical locking slot 122.

In FIGURE 7, the wire fastener unit 86 is illustrated but any of the onepiece units can be substituted since it is desired to show that theopenings in the web portions can be utilized to accommodate the shank124 of a bolt 126 which can be passed through an ordinary wooden post128 whereby the locking unit may be fixed on a selected portion or faceof the ordinary wooden fence post 128.

In all of the forms, it can be seen that there is a dominant theme andthat is that a pair of clips, whether individually mounted or inintegral association for common mounting, are provided and are formedwith identical but reverse slots, one extending upwardly and the otherdownwardly, so to speak, with the slots having inner closed ends thatare in substantial horizontal alignment for the reception of the wirestrand 16 or similar elongated flexible member and that the wire strand16 or similar member is locked against upward and downward movement andheld against the inner ends by virtue of the fact that the slots arevertically spaced in that, while their inner ends are in horizontalalignment, the entrance passages are disposed in vertically spacedrelation.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles ofthe invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction and operation shown anddescribed, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalentsmay be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention asclaimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. In combination with an upright post having a front face to which anelongated horizontal member such as a strand of taut wire is to besecured, a pair of clips arranged in paired side-by-side laterallyspaced relation,

means mounting said clips in such paired arrangement on said front faceof said post with the clips horizontally outstanding forwardly from saidface, each of said clips defining a plate-like body portion arrangedsubstantially axially of the vertical axis of said post, an upstandingintegral plate-like web portion including front and rear faces extendingbetween and interconnecting said body portions and supported from saidupright post with the rear face of said web portion overlying said frontface of said post and said body portions projecting outwardly from thefront face of said web portion, said web portion including a centralportion thereof extending between its upper and lower edges displacedforwardly from the medial plane of said web portion and defining anupstanding rearwardly opening channel adapted to embracingly receivetherein a forwardly projecting upstanding rib supported from said postand projecting outwardly from the front face of said post, said webportion also having an opening formed therethrough intermediate theupper and lower edges thereof in the area of said central portion andopening rearwardly into said channel adapted to receive therethrough aprojection carried by said upright rib and projecting forwardly fromsaid rib, the body portion of each clip being formed with a slotarranged generally vertically therein for the reception of a flexiblemember extending transversely of the vertical axis of said post, theslot in the body portion of one clip having a closed upper end and theslot in the body portion of the other clip having a closed lower end,said closed ends being substantially in horizontal alignment and saidslots having entrance passages, said entrance passages being disposed invertically spaced relation.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said post includes an upstandingforwardly projecting rib projecting outwardly from the front face ofsaid post and snugly received in said channel, and vertically spacedprojections carried by said rib and projecting forwardly from thelatter, one of said projections being snugly received through saidopening, said body portions being provided with outer vertical edges,said passages being formed through said edges into said slots and beingformed in the body portion of one clip at the top thereof and in thebody portion of the other clip at the bottom thereof.

3. The combination of claim 1 wherein said post includes an upstandingforwardly projecting rib projecting outwardly from said front face ofsaid post and snugly received in said channel, and vertically spacedprojections carried by said rib and projecting forwardly from thelatter, one of said projections being snugly received through saidopening, said slots opening downwardly through the lower edge of one ofsaid body portions and the other of said slots opening upwardly throughthe upper edge of the other of said body portions.

4. The combination of claim 1 wherein said post includes a forwardupstanding flange Whose forward surface defines said front face andincluding opposite side plate-like marginal edge portions, said bightportion including horizontally elongated opposite end laterallyrearwardly struck tongues projecting toward each other and whose remoteends define the opposite side limits of said opening, the free endportions of said tongues being disposed behind said opposite sidemarginal edge portions and functioning with the rear face portions ofsaid Web portion opposing said front face of said post to clamp said webportion to said forward upstanding flange of said post.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 319,277 6/1885 Lesher 25653 X413,088 10/1889 Payne 25653 589,538 9/1897 Stockman et a1. 759,4885/1904 Van Meter 256-53 X 774,295 11/ 1904 Wheeler 25653 905,090 11/1908 McClure. 1,030,131 6/1912 Schultz 256-48 1,499,933 7/1924 Jones256-48 FOREIGN PATENTS 52,973 4/ 1937 Denmark.

DAVID J. WILLIAMOWSKY, Primary Examiner. DENNIS L. TAYLOR, AssistantExaminer.

